06The Trust / Inspiring young livesRead the findings from our Youth Index research in full princes-trust.org.uk/youthindexYouth IndexThe Prince's Trust has published the results of the fourth annual Youth Index, which measures how young people feel about their lives today and their confidence in the future. The research involved 2,074 young people aged 16 to 25, who indicated in an online survey how happy they felt about several aspects of their lives and how confident they were about their future. The findings suggest that growing up without a daily routine or structure could harm a young person's school grades and overall wellbeing. While one in ten young people felt that their days "lacked structure and direction" when growing up, those who left school Jaimie Brogan,17 Before joining The Prince's Trust xl club, Jaimie, from Ashford, had a chaotic life. After her parents separated when she was 14, she started going out every evening until after midnight to escape what was happening at home, and began skipping school.However, when she was sent to a Pupil Referral Unit, Jaimie had a 'wake-up call'. "I didn't want to go back there, so I knew I had to do something about my behaviour."After joining The Prince's Trust xl club, Jaimie took part in activities to improve her confidence, motivation and teamwork skills, helping her to re-engage with education in an informal way."My whole attitude to school changed," says Jaimie. "It was really good fun and helped rebuild my confidence. I realised that if I didn't settle down and work hard, I was going to limit my choices for the rest of my life."Last summer, Jaimie passed all her GCSEs with grades A-C. She's now at college and hopes to go to university. "I was really proud of myself," she says. "It was a big deal for someone like me - I expected to leave school with nothing."A ROUTINE PROBLEMA Prince's Trust study suggests that a lack of structure during childhood could harm a young person's future

princes-trust.org.uk/thetrust 07The campaign's starsKane Hannaway, 17Growing up in Manchester with his mum and two siblings, Kane admits he was difficult to manage. His mum tried to give him a routine, but he felt that he could do as he wanted.Kane found it difficult to follow instructions at school and, at 13, he was removed from class for disrespectful behaviour. He was soon hanging around with the wrong crowd and getting into trouble with the police. After Kane had been to two Pupil Referral Units, the school suggested that he try the Fairbridge programme to help get his life back on track. "Going to the Fairbridge programme was a turning point for me," he says. "The staff didn't judge me on my previous behaviour, they were easy to talk to and they treated me like an adult. The activities kept me occupied and away from bad influences. I felt better about myself and my relationship with my mum improved."Kane is now studying catering at college and hopes to become a chef. "Without the Fairbridge programme, I'd still be hanging out on the streets, committing offences," he says. "I'm determined to keep going forward and to better myself."88%of young people taking part in xl clubs go on to further education, employment or trainingwith fewer than five A*-C GCSEs are almost three times as likely to claim this.More than a quarter say that they did not have a set bedtime while growing up. This increases to 39 per cent among young people with lower grades, who are also twice as likely as their peers to say they did not have regular meal times (30 per cent compared with 14 per cent). And while 21 per cent of young people believe that they did not receive the support they needed at school, this almost doubles to 40 per cent among those with poorer grades.The responses were converted into an index number out of 100, where 100 is entirely happy or confident and zero is not at all happy or confident. Overall, the index number for young people's happiness is 72, and for confidence about the future it is 74. However, those who said they "lacked structure and direction" while growing up have a happiness index of 62 and a confidence index of 65. For young people with poorer grades, the numbers are 63 and 66 respectively."The absence of structure and routine in a young life can have a devastating impact," says Martina Milburn, Chief Executive of The Prince's Trust. "Without the right support, directionless teenagers can become lost young adults - unconfident, underqualified and unemployed. "Our in-school xl clubs give the hardest-to-reach young people intense, structured support, helping to prevent potential drop-outs and exclusions. Similarly, our Fairbridge programme builds self-esteem through one-to-one support outside the classroom." WiThouT supporT, direcTionless Teenagers can become losT adulTscoVersTorY